This area is not nearly as cleanly delineated as the gifts listed in I Cor 12.

God does not call an organization, but a person

We need to start by stating something very important. God sees us all as individuals. He relates to us personally, as individuals. He has placed several lists of callings into that part of scripture we call the new covenant. The three major ones are seen to the right.

Most teachers separate the three listings—especially the list on Ephesians. The Ephesian list has five titles that are normally called the offices and are used for officials of the church.

Building a work with the five callings of Ephesians 4

• Apostle

The one sent: This can be for a work as large as Paul’s call to the Gentiles or as small as a Bible study. The apostle is responsible for the spiritual leadership of the work.

• Prophet

The one who speaks the words from God: Prophets need to be under leadership, commonly of an apostle as a work is begun. A wise apostle relies on a prophet to keep the direction of the work focused on the vision given by the Lord.

• evangelist

The one who calls heathen to repentance: Again, this type of job usually works better if it is a ministry under the leadership of an apostle. The apostle can keep the focus on the people targeted by the specific work the Lord is developing.

• pastor

The shepherd of the flock: Often a counselor, one who cares for the sheep, tends to the sick and confused, keeps them safe, not necessarily the leader. In fact, the pastor would ideally be charged with caring for the people gathered for a work by the apostle and evangelist

• teacher

The one who explains: Here also, in an ideal situation, a teacher would explain doctrine and train the sheep gathered in the apostle's work.

Obviously, this is not commonly understood by the church as it stands in America today

I see no semantic or biblical justification for separating the Ephesian list from the others. It is true that the Romans list appears to be much more general. The Corinthians list appears to be covering the other two from a different angle. However, they all seem to be talking about the same thing. The Romans list just avoids titles.

Chronological nature of callings

Here the Ephesian and Roman lists seems to be part of the same thing. Apostles come first, followed by Prophets, then the rest of the workers as the work is developed by the Lord.

Apostles: one who is sent; the responsible one

A work of God starts with an apostle. There is no evidence that these lists are talking about the Twelve, Thirteen, 25, or whatever list you pull from the New Testament. This is the name of the person called to start a work. God calls, gives a vision, and sends an apostle to start a new work. This apostle is responsible for the work, and God deals with the apostle about the work.

Other than tradition and often biased translation, there is no hint that this job is restricted to men, or that it is restricted to the Twelve, or any other limitation placed on God by mankind. Jerry Falwell was the apostle for Liberty University. Jan and Paul Crouch were the apostles for TBN. Aimee Semple McPherson was the apostle sent to start Angelus Temple. Are these extreme examples? Not really. Whether or not I like those ministries has nothing to do with the facts that they felt called by God to start a work. Katherine Kuhlman, on the other hand, does not appear to have been an apostle. Oral Roberts was an apostle to ORU, but his healing ministry was not apostolic in general.

Are church planters apostles?

Sometimes yes, but often not. Many are sent out by human institutions and that clouds the issue beyond our knowing. Only God knows the truth in these instances.

Prophets: speakers for the Lord; not the leaders; they speak for the Lord to the leaders

God speaks through His prophets. Normally apostles are not prophets. It is too dangerous for an apostle to be His or Her own prophet. A prophet needs to be discerned and the founder of a work is commonly the one who discerns whether the prophet is actually speaking the word of the Lord for the apostle’s work. The wise apostle listens to the prophets the Lord gives.

The rest of the callings come under the leadership of an apostle—or they should in an ideal world